Governing enclaves of informality: Unscrambling the logic of the camp in urban Zimbabwe

Abstract

The warehousing of informals in designated enclaves is a common strategy for the government of urban informality in the global South. In this article, I unscramble state-operated enclaves of informality in Zimbabwe. The article scrutinises two types of enclave: a flea market and a holding camp. I extend Agamben’s politico-juridical construction to the social and economic realm. I question claims of inclusion in flea markets by juxtaposing a ‘soft’ zone of indistinction (flea market) with a ‘hard’ zone of indistinction (holding camp), arguing that both spaces are dump sites for homo sacer. I draw attention to the construction of bare life in both enclaves and emphasise the condition of rightlessness and the delimiting of the value of informals to bare life. Reflecting on the extent to which these spaces manifest the logic of the camp, I argue that both are spaces of exception.